Playing for free, now we got some fans tonight--down at the Doll Hut. --from "Doll Hut," the Pontiac Brothers John Mello's dream was to open a little pub, a rock 'n' roll hangout where musicians like himself could drop in during their off hours, have a beer and establish some out-of-the-spotlight camaraderie. A singer and record producer based in Anaheim, Mello spent two years planning a move into the bar business with his wife, Linda.

Playing for free, now we got some fans tonight--down at the Doll Hut. --from "Doll Hut," the Pontiac Brothers John Mello's dream was to open a little pub, a rock 'n' roll hangout where musicians like himself could drop in during their off hours, have a beer and establish some out-of-the-spotlight camaraderie. A singer and record producer based in Anaheim, Mello spent two years planning a move into the bar business with his wife, Linda.

For the live-bait boat Mona Lisa, the day didn't start too well. It had put out from Dana Point in the 2:30 chill of the morning, and three hours later it was offshore of Oceanside, about 20 miles down the coast. After an hour of circling, its sonar and fish-finding electronic gear found a school of anchovies. It streamed its huge net in the early dawn waters just as the lights ashore began winking off, leaving the sky and seas a depressing gray.

For the live-bait boat Mona Lisa, the day didn't start too well. She had put out from Dana Point in the 2:30 chill of the morning, and three hours later was offshore of Oceanside, about 20 miles down the coast. After an hour of circling, her sonar and fish-finding electronic gear located a school of anchovies, and she streamed her huge net in the early dawn waters just as the lights ashore began winking off, leaving the sky and seas a depressing gray.

Paul Mazzeo has been installed as president of the Los Angeles County Painting & Decorating Contractors Assn. by his father, Francis Mazzeo, president of Mazzeo Painting. The event took place at the Biltmore. Also installed were Bill Ray of Cor-Ray Painting, vice president; Jack Henry of Henry & Sons, treasurer, and Robert Johnson of Johnson & Johnson Painting, secretary.

The Doll Hut in Anaheim will continue its tradition of holiday-season rock benefits with a series of seven concerts for three different charities. The food bank program of the AIDS Services Foundation of Orange County will get the proceeds of shows on Dec. 4 and 5; concerts on Dec. 11 and 12 will benefit the Toys for Tots program, and shows Dec. 17 through 19 will benefit the American Red Cross of Orange County.

July 16, 1992 | MIKE BOEHM, Mike Boehm covers pop music for The Times Orange County Edition.

If hard rock newcomers Life, Sex & Death find the success that some in the music industry are predicting for them, you can rest assured that its smell will not be sweet. LSD is fronted by a fellow named Stanley (just Stanley) who gives the band its distinctive personality--and its odor, which is eau de alleyway. To put it bluntly, Stanley looks and acts like a gutter bum, with hair matted, clothes grimy and tattered, posture hunched and affect seemingly addled.

Once the dingy, smoke-clogged bat cave of the local rock scene, the Huntington Beach club formerly known as Night Moves has gotten a thorough face lift and will try to make a comeback as a rock concert venue. Overseeing the club's attempted revival is the Concert Authority, a partnership of local rock promoters. It is now called Club 5902 after its address, 5902 Warner Ave.

Life, Sex & Death is a startling new band from Los Angeles that played the Doll Hut here recently and seemed primed at peak moments to burst the little roadhouse's rickety red clapboard walls. The transplanted Chicago foursome left fans reeling from a performance that was searingly visual and physical. It was also, for some onlookers, all too vividly olfactory. "You guys were great," a willowy young woman visiting from North Carolina said to band members Alex Kayne and Bill E.

As the electronic fish-finder aboard the Mona Lisa went crazy, signaling the presence of huge schools of anchovies beneath the boat, Skipper John Mello inched back on the throttle and brought the craft to an idle. "Light up the skiff," Mello said, his voice barely audible over the low rumble of the Mona Lisa's diesel engine. Deckhand Adam Souder turned on an electrical generator that powered a small, naked light bulb hanging in the skiff, sending a circle of light onto the water. It was 3 a.m.

This Great Religion, whose college-rock liturgy leans toward the Church of England, won the opening round of the Texas Tuneup contest Friday night at Bogart's. The young, British-influenced band, hailing from Long Beach and the San Fernando Valley, was judged best in a diverse field of four contestants that ranged from hard-core punk to a lounge-act spoof.